Virtualization Support in SIMATIC PCS 7 - VMware vSphere ESXi vs Microsoft Hyper-V Compatibility

In SIMATIC PCS 7 (v8.0, v8.1, v8.2, and v9.x), virtualization is officially tested, certified, and supported exclusively on VMware vSphere ESXi platforms. Microsoft Hyper-V is not officially released or supported by Siemens for production PCS 7 OS Servers, OS Clients, Engineering Stations (ES), or Process Historians. While PCS 7 virtual machines may boot and execute on Hyper-V in test environments, running in production voids Siemens technical support guarantees for real-time plant bus communications, redundant server synchronizations, and hardware timestamping. For production reliability, deploy virtualized PCS 7 systems strictly on approved VMware vSphere ESXi releases.

PCS 7 Virtualization Architecture and Real-Time Determinism

Virtualizing a Distributed Control System (DCS) imposes severe real-time deterministic demands that differ fundamentally from standard corporate IT workloads:
* Terminal Bus Multicast Handling: Redundant OS Servers and Clients exchange high-rate multicast telegrams and SQL archive synchronizations.
* Plant Bus Determinism (ISO on TCP / S7 Protocol): Communication to physical S7-400 / CPU 410-5H controllers requires low-jitter packet scheduling and sub-millisecond hardware time synchronization (NTP / SIMATIC mode).
* Hardware Interfacing: Real-time communication processors (such as PCIe CP 1623) require dedicated PCI Passthrough (VMDirectPath I/O) to map physical hardware directly into virtual OS Server instances.

Why VMware vSphere ESXi Is Exclusively Certified by Siemens

Siemens maintains a dedicated strategic partnership and laboratory certification program with VMware:
1. Official Release Documentation: The official Siemens whitepaper 'Virtualization with SIMATIC PCS 7' outlines explicit guidelines exclusively for VMware vSphere (ESXi 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, 6.7).
2. Dedicated Virtual Appliance Profiles: Siemens provides pre-tested OVF/OVA virtual machine templates, network vSwitch configurations, and certified hardware compatibility lists (HCL) for industrial servers (e.g. IPC10000 or HP/Dell enterprise racks).
3. Manufacturer Technical Support Guarantee: Siemens Technical Support provides full diagnostic support, hotfixes, and escalation for virtual systems running on certified VMware versions.

Technical Deficits of Microsoft Hyper-V in DCS Environments

When attempting to execute PCS 7 on Microsoft Hyper-V:
* Lack of PCI Passthrough for CP 1623: Hyper-V does not provide reliable direct-assignment drivers for Siemens HARDNET-IE communication cards, forcing the use of generic virtual network adapters (SOFTNET-IE), which increases CPU load and reduces connection counts.
* Redundancy Resynchronization Jitter: Hyper-V's dynamic memory allocation and vCPU timeslicing introduce micro-latencies that trigger false WinCC Redundancy failovers (@RedundancyState transitions to fault).
* Support Invalidation: In the event of communication dropouts or database corruption on Hyper-V, Siemens Customer Support will require reproducing the defect on a physical PC or approved VMware environment before providing assistance.

Virtualization Platform Support and Architecture Matrix

Compare hypervisor support and feature availability for SIMATIC PCS 7:

Virtualization Feature / RequirementVMware vSphere ESXiMicrosoft Hyper-VSiemens Official Release StatusOfficially Released and SupportedNot Released / Not SupportedPCI Passthrough for CP 1623Fully Supported (VMDirectPath)Restricted / UnsupportedTime Synchronization (NTP / SICLOCK)Sub-millisecond jitterHigh jitter (Virtual clock skew)Pre-Configured OVF TemplatesAvailable from SiemensNoneRedundant OS Server ClusteringTested and CertifiedHigh risk of split-brain failoverSiemens Technical Support SLAFull Manufacturer SupportUnsupported configuration

Verification

To confirm virtualization compliance in a PCS 7 deployment:
1. Open the virtualization management console (VMware vSphere Client); verify that the ESXi hypervisor version matches the supported release specified in the Siemens PCS 7 Virtualization Whitepaper.
2. In the VM settings for redundant OS Servers, confirm that virtual network adapters use VMXNET3 with static MAC addresses.
3. Verify that virtual CPU reservations (GHz) and memory (RAM) are configured as 100% reserved without ballooning.
4. In WinCC Explorer, verify that the internal tag @RedundancyState indicates steady master/standby synchronization without heartbeat timeout alarms.

Limitations and Operational Precautions

Never use dynamic memory allocation, CPU over-committing, or hypervisor memory deduplication (RAM ballooning) on virtualized PCS 7 stations. Starving a virtual OS Server of RAM during heavy alarm bursts will freeze the SQL Server database, triggering unrecoverable SCADA blackout. Always configure 1:1 hardware resource reservations on the ESXi host.

Engineer FAQ

Can I run PCS 7 on Microsoft Hyper-V for testing or training?

Yes. Hyper-V can be used for non-critical offline testing, software development, and training. However, it should never be deployed for live industrial plant operation.

What network adapter should be selected in VMware ESXi for PCS 7?

Always select VMXNET3. Avoid legacy E1000 emulation, as VMXNET3 provides optimized 10 Gbps throughput and reduced hypervisor CPU overhead.

Can the Engineering Station (ES) and OS Server share the same ESXi host?

Yes, provided the physical host server has sufficient CPU cores, memory, and separate physical network interfaces for Plant Bus and Terminal Bus.

Is SIMATIC SIMIT supported in virtual environments?

Yes. SIMIT Virtual Controller (VC) runs seamlessly inside VMware virtual machines to provide complete virtual commissioning.

Technical References

Related Tags

Virtualization
VMware ESXi
Hyper-V
vSphere
DCS Infrastructure

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Virtualization Support in SIMATIC PCS 7 - VMware vSphere ESXi vs Microsoft Hyper-V Compatibility